Overwhelmed with the colorful colors and vibrant atmosphere at the Holi festival

Holi Festival, also known as the "Festival of Colors", is one of the important festivals of India, as well as many countries with Hindu communities. This event is held on the full moon day of the month Phalgun according to the Hindu calendar (usually in February or March). In the photo: A man has colored powder thrown on his face during Holi celebrations in Mumbai, India. (Source: Reuters)

Holi festival marks the end of Winter and the beginning of Spring with the hope of a good harvest. For Hindus, this is also an opportunity to express love, solidarity and that good always overcomes evil. In the photo: Hindu devotees dancing inside a temple in Ahmedabad, India.

According to Britannica, the traditional Holi festival is different across the country, but all originate from Indian mythology. In many places, the festival is associated with the legend of Hiranyakashipu, a demon king in ancient India. Hiranyakashipu enlisted the help of his sister Holika to kill his son, Prahlada, a devotee of Vishnu. During the attempt to burn Prahlada alive, Holika sat with him on the funeral pyre, but wore a cloak to protect herself from the flames. However, the cloak protected Prahlada, and Holika was burned. In the photo: Hindu devotees pray while being splashed with colored water at the Holi festival, held in the grounds of a temple in Ahmedabad, India.

That evening, Lord Vishnu killed the demon king Hiranyakashipu, showing that good had triumphed over evil. In many places in India, people light a large funeral pyre on the eve of Holi to commemorate this legend. This ritual is called Holika Dahan. Everyone sang and danced happily around the fire. In the photo: Hindu devotees walk around a fire during the Holika Dahan ritual held on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India.

In addition, there are other legends, one story revolves around the god Krishna and Radha, Krishna's beautiful childhood girlfriend. The story goes that Lord Krishna fell in love with Radha, but he felt ashamed because he had dark blue skin, while Radha's skin was white as snow. To overcome this, during a game, Lord Krishna playfully colored Radha's face. This is believed to be the origin of throwing powder and colored water. In general, cheerfulness is considered a characteristic of Krishna, the god known for his mischievous pranks. In the photo: A baby girl has blessed colored powder applied to her face during the Holi festival in Mumbai, India.

All the colors used during the festival have their own meanings to the Indian cultural concept. In particular, green symbolizes purity, red means innovation, and finally orange represents happiness and fulfillment. Combining these three tones during the Holi festival brings positive and good meanings. In the photo: A ritual at the Holi festival in Nandgaon town, Uttar Pradesh, India.

The Holi festival officially begins the next morning and people play with colors. Everyone holds dry colored powder or balls containing colored liquid to throw and spray colors at others. In photo: People spray colored water on tourists during the Holi festival in Nandgaon town, Uttar Pradesh, India.

Traditionally, these colors are blended from natural plants and can therefore be easily removed such as saffron, sandalwood and rose. Everyone flocked to the streets to participate in this interesting game. By the end of the morning, everyone looked like a colorful painting. And this is the reason why Holi festival is also called "Festival of Colors". In photo: Holi Festival in Nandgaon, Uttar Pradesh, India.

People gather in groups to sing and dance while drums and dholaks play. Every time the "war" with color stops, everyone eats traditional dishes together.

After a day of playing with colors, everyone takes a bath and wears new outfits to welcome friends and relatives over. Holi is also a festival of forgiveness and new beginnings, with the aim of creating harmony in society, leaving all hatred behind. In the photo: People covered in colored powder at the Holi festival in Nairobi, Kenya.